The Daily Stoic Michael Gervais on the Path to Excellence | You Have To Wrestle With This
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Apr 21, 2021 
Dr. Michael Gervais, a high-performance psychologist known for his work with elite athletes and the host of Finding Mastery, shares insights on achieving excellence. He discusses the vital role of psychology in sports and the importance of merging mental resilience with physical training. Gervais emphasizes separating one’s identity from performance to promote mental well-being. He also explores the challenges of modern parenthood and continuous learning, advocating for self-awareness and embracing vulnerability as keys to personal and professional growth.
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Surfing and Psychology
- Michael Gervais realized the impact of psychology on performance when a fellow surfer gave him advice during a competition.
- The advice was to stop thinking about what could go wrong, which significantly improved Gervais's performance.
Evolution of Performance Psychology
- Historically, coaches often filled the role of performance psychologists, providing mental guidance along with other coaching duties.
- Formal sports psychology emerged as the field became more specialized, similar to strength and conditioning.
Three Trainable Areas
- Humans can train their craft, body, and mind, and top performers prioritize mental training.
- This is where the best of the best train and not leaving mental training to chance.
